Maverick County’s Tom Bowles Detention Center Cited for Deficiencies
Maverick County’s Tom Bowles Detention Center was inspected on April 2, 2015 by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) and was cited for having approximately 10 deficiencies not meeting state jail standards and which need to be corrected, announced Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber. The Tom Bowles Detention Center operates as the Maverick County Jail.
The Texas Commission on Jail Standards report of the April 2, 2015 inspection requires that Maverick County take corrective measures and remedy the deficiencies within 60 days of notification or the Tom Bowles Detention Center will face a remedial order such as a shutdown of the facility.
Among the deficiencies found at the April 2nd inspection at the Tom Bowles Detention Center include the audible communications system used as the two way voice communication device was not functioning correctly in the Jail No. 2 Control Room and three smoke detectors were not functioning properly and inoperable. The TCJS report noted that the Tom Bowles Detention Center shall remain on 15 minute watch until these issues are corrected.
Another deficiency found at the Tom Bowles Detention Center was that no jailer on the documentation provided to inspectors had received any life safety and/or SCBA training for the first quarter of 2015. The TCJS report states that training and drills on emergency situations shall be provided to staff immediately upon employment and no less than each calendar quarter for all jail personnel to include fire, emergency, evacuation drills, and location and use of equipment.
Another deficiency found at the Tom Bowles Detention Center was that the smoke removal system in the facility is not operating properly. The TCJS report states that the facility shall remain on 15 minute watch until this issue is corrected. The smoke removal system is used to extract smoke out of the building into the exterior.
Another deficiency noted in the TCJS report is that the department’s fire control panel is in trouble mode and will not reset itself back to normal. The panel did not operate as designed on the day of the inspection, April 2, 2015. The TCJS report notes that the facility shall remain on 15 minute watch until the issue is corrected.
The TCJS report states that all life safety equipment shall be inspected, maintained, and tested by qualified persons in order for the equipment to be safe, secure, and fully operative at all times.
Another deficiency noted in the TCJS report is that the facility’s initial custody assessment on all newly admitted inmates done prior to housing assignments to determine the custody level of each inmate needed to be done immediately as documentation provided indicated that some inmates had been housed up to five days before having their classification completed.
Another deficiency noted during the April 2, 2015 inspection of the Tom Bowles Detention Center found that at least one inmate was beging detained and/or housed prior to the suicide intake screening form being completed as required. The TCJS report states that an approved disabilities suicide prevention screening instrument shall be completed immediately on all inmates admitted to the facility.
Another deficiency found during the April 2, 2015 inspection was the jailer staff to inmate ratio was not being adhered to as indicated in the regulations set by the State of Texas through state statues and rules. The TCJS report found that the Tom Bowles Detention Center is not staffed to meet the state-mandated requirement of 1 officer for every 48 inmates.
The report noted that documentation provided during the inspection showed that at times the facility had 118 inmates housed for only 2 jailer officers on the floor, averaging 1 jailer for every 59 inmates housed.
Another deficiency cited in the TCJS report is that the facility shall have a regular daily schedule for work and inspections necessary to keep the facility clean. The report notes that this daily schedule shall be assigned and supervised by corrections officers who have the responsibility for keeping the facility clean and making regular sanitation inspections. During the April 2nd inspection, the TCJS inspector noted that many of the cells had paper and/or debris covering many light fixtures as well as many vents.
Another deficiency found during the April 2nd inspection was that documentation provided to the inspector showed the facility’s generators are tested weekly and at least one time monthly with a load transfer, howeve, on the day of the inspection in the Jail No.2 side of the facility the generator is not being tested with the load transferred to the switch. The report noted that Tom Bowles Detention Center maintenance personnel were not able to perform the test and admitted that someone from San Antonio used to come to complete the test but had not been there in a while. The report noted that the documentation could not be provided to show when the last load test was performed by personnel qualified or trained to complete the test at the facility.
The Texas Commission on Jail Standards specifies on the report that the deficiencies found require immediate attention and complete appropriate corrective measures be set forth within the allotted time of 60 days. However, the report does state that the TCJS is available to discuss and assist Maverick County with helping implement the appropriate corrective measures needed at the facility.
Maverick County Sheriff Tom Schmerber stated that all deficiencies noted in the TCJS report will be corrected within the time prescribed in the report (60 days) and he will contact TCJS to return and conduct another inspection of the Tom Bowles Detention Center to insure that all corrective measures requested have been done and implemented so that the Tom Bowles Detention Center passes state inspection standards.
